Sunday Clutter: Virginia Mess, Elizabeth Warren, SNL, Orange Vanila Coke, Julian Edelman, Boston Red Sox, Mr. Rogers, the Offspring, and more
02/10/2019
Hi everyone,
Welcome back! Come on in, have a seat. How's your weekend going? BDH and Little Buddha have been focusing on their book while I take care of some errands. In hindsight, I'm not sure what they're reading is age-appropriate, but I guess that ship has sailed. (You can read their review in a few weeks.) The guys decided to take a break, so they asked if we could all hang out for a bit. What am I going to do, say no? I don't think so. They just made some coffee, so help yourself to a nice medium DD, and let's clear out some Sunday Clutter.
The mess in Virginia continues, as calls are now growing for Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax to resign, following multiple accusations of sexual assault that were made against him. Let's be clear, those accusations must be taken seriously and investigated, and the repercussions will be what they will be. In the meantime, does anyone find it weird that a scandal about racist behavior from a white governor is transforming into a push for the African-American lieutenant governor to resign? Governor Ralph Northam remains adamant that he won't leave office following the revelation about his racist medical school yearbook picture, and we're wondering if his camp had anything to do with the stories coming out about Fairfax. Of course, even if they both leave, Attorney General Mark Herring would be next in line for the governor's office, but he's got his own blackface scandal.
Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) formally launched her 2020 presidential campaign yesterday. She left no doubt that she is a leader in the Democratic Party's progressive wing:
(Senator Warren) hit on many of the policy ideas animating Democrats, such as Medicare for All and the Green New Deal, and forcefully called out racial discrimination for holding back minority families. And she sought to present her message as unifying and inclusive, particularly for core Democratic blocs that she is trying to assemble into a broad front against the wealthy and powerful who have “paid off politicians to tilt the system just a little more in their direction” year after year.
There is a reason Donald Trump has been attacking Warren for so long (including this atrociously racist tweet last night) - he knows she won't back down from him, and unless he's got Russia's help again, that's a problem. The noise about her heritage is a distraction from what actually matters in this country, and she needs to figure out how to shut it down as soon as possible so people can focus on the important issues that impact their lives.
Senator Warren made it official on Saturday. (pic via w3livenews.com)
The GOP continues to freak out about Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) by spreading any lie they can find about her, because strong women terrify Republicans.
Let's see what SNL has to say about the Jeff Bezos - National Enquirer story:
Of course, David Pecker's lawyer denies the claim that the Enquirer's parent company was trying to extort Bezos. Something tells us they're going to regret starting this conversation. Bezos has opened the door for others, like Ronan Farrow, to tell their own stories of the tabloid trying to blackmail them, and you know that's just the tip of the iceberg.
Coca-Cola has their first new flavor in over a decade, with the upcoming release of Orange Vanilla Coke. We are on record when it comes to the damage that soda and sugar do to the body, but we still have a handful of sodas, maybe 10, over the course of a year. Five of those are probably Vanilla Cokes, so yeah, we might give this a shot if it's still available the next time we're in the mood for one.
We're sorry to see Super Bowl MVP Julian Edelman's mammoth beard vanish, but letting Ellen DeGeneres shave it on her show raised some money for the Boys & Girls Club of Boston, so at least it helped a good cause. We're already looking forward to Edelman starting a new one for next year's playoffs.
Cheers again to the New England Patriots, but now it's time to think about baseball! Boston Red Sox pitchers and catchers formally report to camp on the 13th, 12th, which we consider an early birthday present. The 2019 Red Sox roster looks like it will be nearly identical to last year's championship team, with the only major outstanding questions being who will be the closer, and which of the three catchers will be moved. The Sox will have a number of contract decisions coming soon, but theer's no reason this group can't make a solid run at winning another World Series this year.
We avoided the Fred Rogers documentary, Won't You Be My Neighbor, when it was in the theaters last year because we didn't want it to influence our review of The Good Neighbor which is a comprehensive biography of Mr. Rogers. However, now that the program is airing on HBO, we'll need to set aside some time to watch it.
Okay kids, that's going to do it for now. Let's have the Offspring close things out with, "You're Gonna Go Far, Kid," for today's, "Song of the Day."
Thanks for stopping by, everyone. It was great to see you, as always. Enjoy the rest of your day, be good, and we'll catch up with you again for more fun soon. Until next time, that's today's Clearing out the Clutter, and we are outta here.
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